Jaques d'Alltrades wrote:

The message
from Ellie C contains these words:


I recently moved to the south of France from the northeast part of the
US, so I'm completely unused to the new climate, and am not sure what to
expect. I have planted some raspberry bushes and I'm wondering if I
should expect them to shed their leaves in the autumn, or if they stay
green all year. Where I'm from, in Massachusetts, the leaves would have
fallen by now, so I'm just a bit surprised to see these small plants
looking very green and happy.


Do they need any special treatment to make them stop growing before
winter (such as it is) sets in? Stop watering them perhaps?


Thanks,


Ellie (whose French isn't yet up to posting in the French gardening group!)


Unfortunately the climate of the south of France is unlike anything in
the UK, so unless you are lucky enough to meet another visitor here who
comes from that region, I fear that you won't get any definitive
answers.

FWIW I would expect the canes to drop their leaves, and in any case,
does it matter? You just treat them as normal, and cut the canes at the
recommended time for the varieties you have.

Amusing to hear about how different the winters are. I lived in Ireland
for a while and found their winters to be similar to the winter here in
France. But it's all in how delicate your perceptions are, I think.
Coming from Massachusetts, where the ground freezes 4 feet down and
there's snow cover from December to April, the winters in France and
England and Ireland all seemed similar to me - like a long autumn
followed by a long spring. :-)